Shoo-fly for printing-presses.



' .SHOO'FLY FOR PRINTING PRESSES. APLIoA'rIoN plum un". 19.` 1903.

F0 HGDEL.

UNITED y STATES Patented Deeember'S, 190B. *Y

PATENT OFFICE.

JOHN J. MOSHER, OF ROCHESTER, NEW YORK, ASSIGNOR OF ONE-HALF, TO

CHADWICK H. MOORE, OF ROCHESTER, `NEIT YORK.

SHoo-FLY Fon' PRINTING-PRESSES.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent'No. 746,124, dated December 8, 1903. Application filed January Z9, 1903. Serial No. 141,005. (No model.)

.To all whom it may concern/.-

Be it known that I, JOHN J. MosHEE, of Rochester, in the county of Monroe and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in- Shoo-Flys for Printing-Presses; and I dohereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this specification, and to the reference-numerals marked thereon.

My present invention relates to printingpresses or other machines having a movable support` or impression -surface adapted to carry sheets of material, such as paper for printing or similar operations; and it has for its object to provide a device, commonly known as a shoo-iiy, for lifting or elevating the forward or advancing edge of a sheet,v

row or wide margins may be successfully delivered.

To these and other ends the invention consists 1n certain improvements and combinations of parts, all as willbe hereinafter more fully described, the novel features being pointed out in the claims at the end of the specification.

In the drawings, Figure l is a perspective View showing a portion of the cylinder. of a printing-press. Fig. 2 is an end elevation thereof, and Fig. 3 is a detail view.

Similar reference-numerals in the three iigures indicate similar parts.

In illustrating my invention I have shown itapplied to aprinting-.press embodying a rotary cylinder l, having the impression-surface or support 2, on which is carried the sheet of paper during the printing operation. At one side of the cylinder is provided a recess 3, and arranged therein are the usual blanket-clamps 4, engaging with the edge 5 of the support to secure the blanket in the usual manner, and also arranged in this recess are thexgrippers 6, attached y'to the shaft '7 and operated in the usual4 or any preferred manner to engage the forward edge ofa sheetV of paper to hold it upon the cylinder. The sheets are removed from the latter by the usual strippers or corresponding devices, (indicated by 8,) which engagebeneathjthe edge of the sheet when it is elevated. y

In the printing operation considerable difficultyhas been experienced in elevating or moving the forward end of the sheet away from the cylinder after it is released by the grippers to cause itfto be engaged bythe strippers and to run off onto the iiy or other sheet-delivering mechanism. This is especially true when the sheets are being printed with narrow marginsas theiingers upon the shoe-fly. lift out from beneath the sheet, al-

lowing it to drop back and follow the cylinder instead of passing out on the stripper- .flngers To remedy this difficulty, I provide elevating devices which are adapted not only to move away from the support, but to move back under the sheet thereon. Mechanism for accomplishing this result lmay be constructed invarious ways to accommodate it g 'to the particular apparatus upon which it is to be employed, and the construction which I have illustrated in the drawings is one applicable toga two-revolution cylinder printing-pressas before mentioned. Located in the ,recess 3 is a rock-shaft 9, journaled at the ends of the cylinder and having arranged thereon short outwardly-extending crankarms 10, in which `is rotatably supported a shaft 1l, carrying the Shoo-flyiingers 12, the ends of which are preferably attened and made thin, as indicated atl. lThe fingers l1 are adapted'to be moved toward theimpression surface 2, as will be further described, and I also provide means for causing them to be` moved outward relatively thereto. The latter movement may be conveniently 'accomplished by providing the forward ends of the fingers with the curved lower sides 13', forming cam-surfaces, which -engage with the edge of the support 5 to raise the ylingers, as

will be understood. As the several'fmgers are rigidly attached to the shaftll bymeans of the set-screws 14:, the cam-surfaces 13 might be dispensed with, except uponthose rooV fingers at the ends of the shafts, as the operation of one will cause the shaft to be rotated and the other fingers to be raised. This operation, however, may be accomplished in a different manner; but the one I have shown is simple, and as all of the fingers are made alike they may be adjusted at any desired point on the shaft 11, and the cam-surface being on the fingers and engaging the edge of the support the effect of their operation will be the same, irrespective of the thickness of the blanket. The fiy-fingers are held in the normal position, with their outer ends 13 in engagement with the support, by means of a leaf-spring 15, which engages a lug or projection 16 on a hub secured to the shaft 11. In order to support the fingers out of the normal or operative position, the lug 16 is provided with a flat face 16', which engages with the spring, as shown in dotted lines in Fig. 3, enabling the operator to obtain convenient access to the blanket-clamps -lf or the grippers 6. At one end of the shaft 9 is provided an operating-lever 17, actuated in one direction by a retractile spring 18, which holds the lever in engagement with the lever 19, pivoted to the cylinder at 20, the movement of said lever being limited in one direction by a lug or projection 21 thereon engaging a pin or stud 22 on the cylinder, as shown in dotted lines in Fig. 2, and the end of the lever extending beyond the shaft Sis curved, as shown, to permit its free outward movement. The sheet-elevating devices or shoofly fingers are operated by the movement of the support or cylinder 1 by means of a roller 23, arranged on the lever 19, adapted to engage a relatively stationary abutment or cam 24, arranged upon the frame of the machine, (indicated by 25.) The construction of the printing-press whereby a relative movement of the cylinder and cam is effected has not been shown, as this is accomplished in some manner in all two-revolution presses either bya raising and lowering of the cylinder` or by a movement of the cooperating parts whereby the various devices on the cylinder are only operated upon alternate revolutions thereof.

The operation of the device will be readily understood. The sheets to be printed or otherwise operated upon are fed upon the support and engaged by the grippers 6 in the usual manner, with its forward edge extending slightly over the ends 13 of the fingers 12. The cylinder being revolved in the direction indicated by the arrow, Fig. 2, until after the printing operation has been completed, it is brought to the point at which the sheet is to be delivered, when the gripper-fingers 6 are released and the roller 23 engages the cam 24, elevating the arm 19 and rocking the shaft 9. This movement of the shaft in the direction indicated by the arrow causes the fingers 12 to be moved backwardly beneath the sheet, when the cam-surface 13' thereon, engaging the edge 5 of the cylinder, will cause the ends of the fingers to rise or move away from the support, as indicated in dotted lines in Fig. 2, so that the sheet must positively pass out upon the stripper-fingers or other delivery mechanism. In the mechanism which I have shown and described, the parts being located at one side of the impression-surface or forward of the advancing edge of the sheet, they do not interfere with the surface, and they may therefore be employed in printing either with wide or narrow margins. As the fingers are moved toward the sheet they may also be elevated a considerable distance above the support or surface of the cylinder, thus facilitating the stripping operation. While I have described the Shoo-fly as applied particularly to a two-revolution cylinder-press, it will be understood that it is equally applicable to other forms of printing-presses and to all machines for handling or operating upon sheet material for whatever purpose.

l claim as my invention- 1. The combination with a movable support adapted to carry sheet material, of a 1inger arranged forward of the advancing edge of the sheet and means for operatingit rearwardly relatively to the direction of movement of the support, to elevate the edge of the sheet.

2. The combination with a movable device adapted to carry sheet material, of a finger arranged in advance of said sheet and having the end engaging beneath it, and means for elevating the finger and operating it rearwardly relatively to the movement of said device to raise the sheet thereon.

3. The combination with a device adapted to carry sheet material embodying a movable support, of a finger mounted on said device in front of the support and means for moving the finger upward and rearwardly relatively to the support.

4. Ina printing-press,the combination with a movable cylinder having an impression-surface and fingers on the cylinder arranged at one side of said surface, of means operating to move the fingers in a direction opposite to the movement of the cylinder and outwardly therefrom.

5. In a printing-press, the combination with a rotary cylinder having an impression-surface and a rock-shaft arranged at one side thereof, of fingers having the end engaging over the edge of the impression-surface and attached to the shaft, means for operating the shaft to move the fingers rearwardly relatively to the movement of said device to raise the sheet thereon and a cam for raising the fingers.

6. Inaprinting-press,thecombination with a rotary cylinder having the impression-surface and a rock-shaft, of a fly-finger secured thereto and provided with the end extending over the imp ression-surface and provided with a cam cooperating therewith and means for operating the shaft.

7. In a prin ti ng-press,the combination with a frame, a cylinder thereon having the im- IOO IIO

' pression-surface and a. rock-shaft on the eyll naled thereon having the end extending over inder provided with a crank-arm, of a dythe support and provided with a cern-surfaceA finger attached to the latter and extending I adapted to eoperate with the support to raise over the impression-surface, a. cam .on the the end of the finger, a cam on the frame and r5` 5 frame, a lever engaging therewith to rook the a lever-arm coperating therewith to operate shaft and means for simultaneously elevating the rock-shaft.

the finger. i y 8. In a printing-press,the combination with JOHN 'I' MOSHER a frame, a. cylinder thereon havinga blanket- Witnesses: xo support and a rock-shaft on the cylinder pro- G. WILLARD RICH, 5

vided with a crank-arm, of a {1y-finger jour- ELIZABETH J.,PERRY. 

